One of the many things I love about visiting my parents in Jacksonville is the ability to take Les Mills classes at their gym. BodyPump is (and probably always will be) my all-time favorite, but I’ve loved every Les Mills class I’ve tried to date.
After breakfast, my dad and I drove to the gym together to work out. He did his own thing while I went the group exercise route.
My workout lasted a little longer than usual because I really wanted to take two Les Mills classes. First up was an “express” version of BodyAttack. I’ve taken a full BodyAttack class one time before and thought it was fantastic, but the shortened version was a great way to knock out 30 minutes of sweaty cardio in no time at all. We did a lot of high knees and jumping jacks and I was breathing heavy by the end.
After the express BodyAttack class, a bunch of us stayed for BodyPump which was fabulous as always. I know I say this every time I take BodyPump, but really wish my gym would hop on the BodyPump bandwagon. I miss that class so much.
Once my workout was done, I waited for my dad to finish and hung out by the vending machines which totally impressed me!
The snacks and drinks available in this vending machine were significantly healthier than typical vending machine fare. I saw unsweetened green tea, flavored water, nuts, pita chips and more. Love this!
Once my dad was done, we walked out of the gym and started talking about lunch. We tossed around typical lunch options like sandwiches and salads but agreed that eggs sounded fabulous. My dad suggested The Beach Hut, a casual local hotspot and we headed inside for breakfast for lunch!
I placed my eggs on top of a buttered English muffin and topped them with tomato slices to make an egg sandwich that I enjoyed with a mug of hot coffee.
It was a good one!
Hope you guys are having a great Wednesday!
Question of the Afternoon
- What food/snacks do you wish most vending machines would offer?
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Good trail mixes, pretzels, GOOD dark chocolate, Delish 🙂 Always get excited when I see high quality foods in a vending machine!
I’ve seen quite a few of these healthy vending machines online, and I’m in love with the idea! Since I work in a public school system, I see firsthand the junk that the kids consume from the regular machines every day and it horrifies me! I really wish our school would get on board with something like this. In fact, you’ve inspired me to present it to my principal once again!
Hi Natalie,
I work for a vending company based out of Philadelphia, and one of our largest clients is the School District of Philadelphia. We have a strict guideline that we have to follow. Our snacks can only have so many calories, calories from fat, sodium, etc. We also cannot put soda or sports drinks in the machines, either, only water, flavored water, natural juices and milk. Trust me, the vendors WILL comply if they want your business.
Thanks for the feedback, Rachel. I’ll be sure and add this information to the conversation when I speak to my principal. This is such an important issue, and I’m really passionate about it!
I wish my office had a vending machine like that!
I wish vending machines would offer anything healthy! Usually the options that are healthy are very limited or are just pretending to be healthy but aren’t really.
I always love poached eggs for breakfast! Especially when it is paired with avocado and smoked salmon…and vegemite too (got to have something Australian in there!).
i wish vending machines had coconut water!!
My daughter’s gymnastics academy recently replaced their vending machine with a similar “healthier choice” vending machine. I think it’s great and it helps the kids to make better choices when they are needing a quick snack to boost their energy. I am hoping this is the start of a trend!
That is a pretty impressive vending machine!
Body Attack brings me back – my friend and I used to love going to that class together back in the day.
My ideal vending machine is completely unrealistic – I’d love readily available pieces of fruit, hard boiled eggs, or varieties of protein balls – this makes me think of The Office episode where Dwight replaces everything in the office vending machine with fruits and vegetables – everything ended up going bad and the vending machine filled up with fruit flies!
Dang! If only more places had vending machines like that!!!
woo hoo for BODYPUMP – teaching class tonight and looking forward to it!
Super impressive. Other places should take note. My perfect Justin’s almond butter packets, baked chips, dried fruit (no sugar added-just fruit), coconut water and fruit. So easy, right?
Julie! Too funny, my friend Dustin owns a line of vending machines in Ocala called Fresh! LLC and its healthy vending options. There are only a couple in Ocala, one at Trinty catholic high school, one at the Ocala PD and I’m not sure on the other locations! I know he was thinking about reaching out to the Y to put one there!
Okay, I think I need to get in on the BodyPump bandwagon. My sister swears by that class too! California has been improving their vending machine options too. We even have one that is like a mini cafe, but it has a video camera and television scree to keep the employees honest – it sells sandwiches, fresh fruit, and other healthy options. Supposedly we’re getting one at our location and I can’t wait to see what it has to offer 🙂
Willpower.
😀
What great snack options! Love it!
My campus gym has a healthy vending machine! It has stuff like Balance Bars, Luna Bars, chocolate milk, pita chips, etc. I love it!
My employer just got corporate rates for our local YMCA, and we get a free “Try the Y” week that starts today. I want to try BodyPump, but I’m really nervous! I’ve never done a strength training class before, and my upper body isn’t very strong. Any tips for a newbie who’s a self-confessed cardio queen?
We actually have a vending machine with helping options at my Y. I love it!
Wow I wish more places had this healthier vending machine options! This is great! Glad you were able to take some Les Mills classes!
I wish vending machines had more granola bars, like kind bars, or nature valley bars, instead of so many candy bars!
We need more healthy vending machines like that, especially in schools! I wish vending machines had more gluten free options, protein bars, coconut water, and vitamin water.
which gym does Les Mills if you don’t mind me asking. I live in JAX and can’t find which gym you take the class at. I’m originally from Vermont and Les Mills is everywhere in New England! I’ve been hoping more gyms here will jump on that bandwagon… it’s the best workout!
I need vending machines like that at college! For those cravings at 8pm, while I’m frozen in the classroom :p yummyyyy
Yogurt in the chilled vending machines would be awesome!
I love seeing vending machines like that! So refreshing!
Unrelated: Julie, look at the Facebook Purina add. It looks just like Sadie!
I LOVE those vending machines. I really do not understand why there aren’t more of them. I feel like in the next ten years, they will be everywhere. I think they need some at UGA! I would purchase things from them all of the time!
Dried fruit, nuts, almond and peanut butter would all be great!
I’ve been seeing more of these healthy vending machines and think it’s great. I love a good trail mix 🙂
I love hanging with my dad– always so much fun!
LOVE THIS as Im in LOVE with Human Healthy Vending machines.
If only they’d offer farmer’s market veggies cut and washed 🙂
My YMCA has a vending machine like that too–love it!
Also love BodyPump, but don’t take it very often anymore due to the timing of the class.
Eggs and tomato slices are such a great combo!
Love lots of things about this post. 🙂
I love Body Pump too! The gym I go to however is really tiny, classes usually only have about 10 people at most in them, so the licensing costs to maintain the body pump class forced the gym to do away with it. That said, we do have a very similar ‘Get Pumped’ class that follows a similar format and provides an awesome workout. You always post some awesome workouts, ever thought of coming up with your own routine that would be similar to what my gym does? I think you could 😉
I have always said it, BodyPump is my favorite class ever. I dont know why more gyms dont have LesMills classes. I like them all, but Pump is my favorite. I am fortunate enough that my gym has all LesMills classes, which was the main reason I joined to begin with!
Have you tried Group Power by Body Training Systems? It is very similar to the class you take. I wonder if it would be less expensive to get at your gym then the Les Mills classes. I LOVE group power.
http://bodytrainingsystems.com/pages/bts_programs/GroupPower.htm
Man do I wish I had that vending machine at my office. Our lunch options stink so if I don’t come to work prepared I sometimes need to make a run to the vending machine, but there aren’t a ton of healthy options.
I love Body Pump! I’ll be taking that today during my lunch break. I am very lucky because our gym at work has Les Mills classes. 🙂
wow, that vending machine is awesome!!
I can’t wait until we can find an affordable gym so that I can take more group exercise classes! I miss it so much! I wish vending machines would offer healthy trail mixes! And natural bars, like the Kind and Lara bars.
So funny you mention healthy vending machines!!! Today, I am actually meeting with a vending machine company so we can get healthier machines in the gym I work at 🙂
I recently saw a healthier vending machine and I think its a fantastic idea! I am surprised this idea didn’t come about sooner!
I wish healthy vending machines were the norm. I almost never check then out because the options are never good.
Vending machines should have single serve PB/almond butter packets with WW crackers! I think this would be particularly useful in hospital vending machines (I work in healthcare, so am always mindful of the vending machine options which always suck).
I wish someone (vending machines included) would offer unsweetened, DECAF tea!
Couple of things:
1.) I wanted to do BodyPump, but it got cancelled at my school’s gym due to the snow. This made me sad. I’m hoping to do it next semester if it fits into my schedule because I loved powerlifting at my old gym!
2.) Vending machine WANT.
3.) You make me miss home. We’re flying into Jacksonville in a couple weeks; I grew up at the beaches and have been to the Beach Hut plenty of times. I bought a gym pass to use when I’m down there, but alas, no BodyPump. But we ARE going to go to Ocean60 because of your recommendation! I check in here to get a little taste of home while I’m freezing my butt off in Baltimore.
Maltesers. Sorry … guilty treat.
That brunch looks simple and delicious. My gym has one of those “healthy vending machines” and I even saw one once at a bowling alley (now that was a shocker).
I am still dying to see your new hair curling vlog! Any idea when we can expect it? 🙂
I love seeing healthy vending machines! We need more of them.
-AJ
FitTravelerAJ.com